From the outside, the abalone looks like a large, slightly lumpy rock—barely even a shellfish, let alone anything glamorous. But if you are fortunate enough to get a glimpse inside, you find that the inside of the shell is a swirling rainbow.
When have you found unexpected beauty in someone who seemed unappealing at first glance?
I once had a friend who had cerebral palsy. Her speech, her hands mobility was affected and eventually she needed to be in a care center at the end of her life. However, I knew her for years and even though we eventually lived in different locations, I could always stop to visit her when I traveled to a spot near where she lived.
She was one of the most humorous persons I have known; I always loved the colors of the dresses she wore
She was an ardent activist of women’s rights. At one time when she was institutionalized, she learned to knit and crochet and she made zillions of hot pads, and also sweaters and a lovely knitted coat. She had borne two children during a marriage that ended; one of them would come to see her but the other did not. she accepted it, but with sadness. Her name was Freida. I miss her and know that I learned to love and admire her and to have her as a friend.
I had a band teacher who could be described as gruff, rough around the edges, hard to like. He was very tough on us (not cruel, just insistent on high expectations) and it turned some people off. I was actually scared of him when I first met him in seventh grade, but over the years, he mellowed out a bit (though he was still tough when it mattered), and we came to understand each other. I knew he had a good heart in there. I would be the first to defend him to anyone who called him a jerk.